Member Protection
Tennis Australia has adopted a Member Protection Policy which is binding on all State associations and their affiliated clubs and associations.
The Policy addresses issues such as:
- protection of individuals from harassment and discrimination
- preventative measures such as screening and declarations to ensure that the right people are involved in Junior Tennis.
Harassment is any behaviour which is offensive, abusive, belittling or threatening from the point of view of the person receiving the harassment. Harassment can be expressed or implied, physical, verbal or non-verbal. Examples of Harassment include abusive behaviour, belittling jokes or comments, unwelcome remarks, innuendo or taunting, offensive e-mails or letters, displaying offensive material and sexual propositions.
Discrimination is treating a person less favourably than someone else on the basis of an attribute or personal characteristic such as age, disability, marital status, parental/carer status, physical features, political belief/activity, pregnancy, race, religious belief/activity, sex or gender, sexual orientation and transgender orientation.
The By-Law includes the procedures for dealing with complaints, attempting mediation and conducting hearings and appeals. The By-Law also deals with the protection of children by requiring mandatory screening of employees and volunteers who are likely to have individual and unsupervised contact with players under 18 years of age.
In Queensland, the screening process includes the “Working with Children Check” conducted by the Commission for Children and Young People.
Affiliated clubs and associations have the option of setting up their own complaints procedures (by appointing Member Protection Officers, a Disciplinary Officer and a Complaints Tribunal) or referring complaints to Tennis Queensland’s Member Protection Officers and/or Disciplinary Officer, depending on the nature of the complaint.
Where an association or club has established its own Member Protection complaints procedures, complaints should be in writing and should be directed to one of the club or association’s Member Protection Officers or the President.
Where an association or club does not yet have its own procedures, complaints by members should be directed to the President (for referral to Tennis Queensland) or directly to the Member Protection Officer, Tennis Queensland, 190 King Arthur Terrace, Tennyson, Qld 4105 (Phone 3120 7900).
The above information is a précis of the Member Protection Policy. Anybody wishing to read the Policy in its entirety should contact Tennis Queensland or their local club or association or download a copy from the Tennis Australia Web Site (www.tennis.com.au). The direct link is http://www.tennis.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/MP-Policy-FINAL-140715-formatted.pdf.
As the UQ Tennis Club has established its own Member Protection complaints procedures, any complaints about harassment or discrimination should be made to the Club’s Member Protection InformationOfficers by phone (see below), by e-mail (to mpio@uqtc.org.au) or by post (to Member Protection Officers, UQ Tennis Club, PO Box 6005, St Lucia, Qld 4067). Any complaints or queries will be treated with the strictest confidence.
The UQ Tennis Club’s Member Protection Information Officers are:
- Judith Rodins Phone 3870 5074 (h) & 0438 705 074 (m)
- Doug Bergman Phone 0409 090 299 (m)
